Whole Wheat Bread with Walnuts and Raisins - savoury

  The recipe below can be made using milk or a milk substitute - I prefer to use soy or oat milk and oil instead of butter or margarine.  Excellent as sandwich bread or when used for toast.

If you use the 'dough only' cycle on a bread machine, divide the recipe in half  but use the same amount of yeast.  I have a heavy-duty mixer that does all the hard work for me but this recipe can also be made by hand.

1 Cup (240ml) warm water (110°F/43°C)
1 Cup (240ml) warm milk alternative - soy, oat, rice, almond
2 Tbsp sugar
1 Tbsp dry yeast (or one package active dry yeast)

Place the ingredients above in a bowl and allow this to sit for a few minutes until you see it begin to foam.

Add to the above mixture:
 
3 Tbsp oil, margarine (or oil)
2 Cups coarsely chopped walnuts - I just break them up a bit
1-1/2 Cups raisins or sultanas
1 Tbsp salt
1 tsp ground black pepper - really - this gives the bread a deeper flavour
1/2 Cup cornmeal or polenta - I use polenta as there is no cornmeal here in Australia
1 egg (optional, but seems to keep the loaf fresh for a longer time)

Give this a good stir and then add:

2 Cups whole wheat flour
2-1/2 - 3 Cups bread flour - bread flour is superior as it is made from soft winter wheat

Knead this mixture for 3 minutes.  Let it rest, lightly covered for 5-10 minutes.  Begin to knead again until it is smooth and elastic.  You may need to add a bit more bread flour if it seems 'sticky'  The final kneading should take about 10 minutes.

Oil a large bowl.  Place the dough into the bowl, turning once so the entire surface is coated.  Cover with plastic wrap and let rise until double.  In winter when it is chilly, I mix bread dough up the night before I will be baking - if the house is cool it seems to take longer, especially with whole grain dough.

When the dough has risen, punch it down, removed from the bowl, divide in half and shape.  Two loaf pans may be used or the dough can be formed into free-formed loaves. 

To prepare the pan(s) - line pan with baking paper.  Using a brush, oil the baking paper and sprinkle with 1 Tbsp cornmeal or polenta per loaf - this gives the bottom of the loaves a nice crunch and prevents sticking.

Cover with plastic wrap or a clean tea-towel.  Allow to rise until double in size - about one hour (longer if your kitchen is cool)

Heat oven to 350°F/175°C.

Nearly Ready to Bake

Bake until the bread is well-browned and sounds hollow when you give it a tap - this should take about 35-45 minutes.

Turn out onto a wire rack and remove baking paper if it is still attached.  Allow to cool on the rack before slicing.

K (P)

This Challah is Baked!

Handy Metric to Imperial cooking conversion chart

Honey Whole Wheat Bread

Honey Whole Wheat Bread
 

3 cups warm water
1/4 cup molasses or brown sugar
1/2 cup honey
1/2 ounce yeast (1 packet)

1/2 cup oil, margarine or butter, softened
   
2 teaspoons salt   
1/2 tsp pepper
3 cups all-purpose flour   
4 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
  

In a large mixing bowl add warm water, honey, molasses or  brown sugar and stir.  Add yeast and let sit for about 5 minutes until you see it begin to look a bit frothy.  This means the yeast is working.

Add 1/2 cup oil (or margarine or butter) and stir.  Add salt, pepper (this makes it really nice) and add the white flour.  Using a spoon, a hand mixer or the dough hook on your large mixer, incorporate the ingredients together - mixing for about 3 minutes.  Only use a spoon or heavy duty mixer equipped with a bread hook from this point on. 
Now add 4-1/2  cups of whole wheat flour.  If it gets too stiff to handle with a bread hook (on a larger machine) then turn out onto a floured surface and continue kneading, by hand, for 10 minutes.  If the dough feels 'very' sticky, add a bit more flour.  It should be a medium-heavy dough.  Continue mixing with a dough hook or kneading by hand for 10 minutes total.

Oil a large bowl and turn bread dough into it.  Flip dough over, making sure all sides are oiled.  Cover with a clean tea towel or cling wrap.  Allow to rise until doubled - about 45-60 minutes.

Flatten the dough and cut into 2 or 3 pieces - depending upon how big your loaf pans are.  Mine are large so I make two extra-large loaves.



Prepare loaf pans as follows:  *If you have baking or parchment paper, cut a piece twice as large as each pan.  Crumple it a bit (or get it slightly damp) so it fits into the pan.  Using a pastry brush, brush a bit of oil on the inside of the parchment paper.  (If you are not using parchment paper, then simply oil your baking pans well.)

Flatten each piece of dough and shape into a loaf, making sure any seams are well-pressed together. 

Prepare loaf pans as follows:  *If you have baking or parchment paper, cut a piece twice as large as each pan.  Crumple it a bit (or get it slightly damp) so it fits into the pan.  Using a pastry brush, brush a bit of oil on the inside of the parchment paper.  (If you are not using parchment paper, then simply oil your baking pans well.)

Add dough to the loaf pans, cover lightly and allow to rise until double.  Depending upon the temperature of your kitchen, this should take between 45 minutes and 1-1/2 hours. 

Heat oven to 180C or 350F.  Place pans on racks so they do not touch each other directly.  Bake for approximately 35-40 minutes or until a hollow sound is heard when you tap the top of one of the loaves.  I have baked so much that I can usually smell when it is done.

Remove pans to a cooling rack.  If you have used parchment/baking paper, you can now lift the loaves out of the pans to cool on the rack.  If you have used oiled pans, wait about 5-10 minutes and invert onto cooling rack to encourage bread to come out.

*It is best, especially when baking with honey, to use parchment/baking paper as food will come out of the pans effortlessly.


Makes three loaves or two HUGE loaves
K (P) or dairy if you use butter